Long-expected battle for Idlib may have begun
Backed by massive Russian air power, the Syrian regime has launched what may be the start of a long-feared offensive to retake opposition-held northern Hama and Idlib, in which an estimated 3 million inhabitants and civilians displaced from other areas are trapped.
GAZIANTEP, Turkey — Syrian regime and allied forces took the key town of Kfar Nabudah from opposition fighters in southern Idlib on May 8 after gaining, losing and then regaining a village and a strategic hill in northern Hama two days before.
The taking of the town, known as a gateway to the rest of southern Idlib, seems to have marked the start of a major ground offensive.
Opposition fighters from the formerly al-Qaeda-linked Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and the rival coalition formed in early 2018 from several Free Syrian Army (FSA) factions — the National Liberation Front — have been working alongside one another to repel regime attacks.
However, on May 9 the regime and its allies reportedly entered three areas in western Hama without fighting after the withdrawal of opposition fighters.
